


3d-glasses effect

by fentonworks



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Not Beta Read, Squips (Be More Chill), both two river AND broadway squips are here, unless u count me looking over it again almost a year later as "beta reading"
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-21 14:01:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30022854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fentonworks/pseuds/fentonworks
Summary: "I dunno..." He leans back a bit, pushing his glasses back up. "Y'know how sometimes, candy gets stuck together when it's sitting in the bag? and you get like, a triple-sized Nerd, or two Swedish Fish stuck together? It looks kinda like that. The bigger the better, I guess."Jeremy nods. It makes sense to him, at least. It shouldn't, considering this was a pill from Japan containing a supercomputer and it seemed like it should've been one-pill-per-bag, but that kind of logic didn't really cross his mind. "Sooo... not intended, then?""Probably not. Pretty cool, though."
Kudos: 8





	3d-glasses effect

Once out of the Payless, Jeremy sticks his hands in his pockets, fidgeting with the little plastic bag in his left pocket. 400 dollars. He'd paid 400 US dollars for a little grey pill in a type of snack bag he'd only ever seen Michael use for weed. Hah. Well, everything has a use.

He listens half-heartedly to Michael rambling on as they wait in line at the food court. It's something he's already heard Michael talk about, but it's much better than awkward silence, and Jeremy doesn't have much to say anyway. Listening to Michael infodump chipped away at the huge lump of anxiety that'd been building in his throat ever since they entered the mall. Michael nudges him with an elbow.

"Hey dude, I've got this covered." He smiles. "Go find a table."

Relief flooded through Jeremy and he nodded in return. "Gotcha. 

  
  


* * *

  
  


A tray of cheese fries slides into his vision, and his head snaps up to see Michael, holding a hot dog in one hand and a Mountain Dew in the other. He takes the dew with a shaky hand, staring at it for a moment before ultimately setting it down again. Michael sits across from him, watching as Jeremy pulls out the baggie from his pants pocket.

"Well. Ya gonna do it?" He asks, in-between bites. "I mean. you _did_ spend all that money, so I guess it's kinda useless not to, but... y’know."

Jeremy rolls his eyes, gently tapping the bag until the pill falls into his hand. It looks... weird. Michael finishes his hot dog.

"H-hey, uh. Mike?" Jeremy looks up for a moment, glancing at the other boy, before looking back down at the pill. He holds it up between his index and thumb for Michael to see.

"Is it- d’you think it's s-supposed to look like this?"

Michael leans over the table to get a closer look, sliding his glasses down his nose to squint at it better.

"I dunno..." He leans back a bit, pushing his glasses back up. "Y’know how sometimes, candy gets stuck together when its sitting in the bag? And you get like, a triple-sized Nerd, or two Swedish Fish stuck together? It kinda looks like that. The bigger the better, I guess."

Jeremy nods. It makes sense to him, at least. It shouldn't, considering this was a pill from Japan containing a supercomputer and it seemed like it should’ve been one-pill-per-bag, but that kind of logic didn't really cross his mind. "Sooo... Not intended, then?"

"Probably not. Pretty cool, though." A phone pings, and Michael fishes out his cell from his hoodie pocket. Jeremy diverts his attention fully to the pill in his hand, watching it's odd shape roll around his palm.

Rich said it was a grey, _oblong_ pill. It _actually_ looks more like two oversized Tic-tacs accidentally fused together. Still grey though, that much was right.

Jeremy bites his lip. Should he go back to the Payless and ask for a different pill..? Did Rich not know basic shapes? Is he just _this_ special, getting a weirdly shaped pill on what's _definitely_ been one of his weirdest days to date? 

...but what if the reason it looks so different is because it got fucked up? What if it's not meant to be like this and they didn't mean to release it and he shouldn't take it at all? What if it really fucks him up? What if—

"Jeremy."

His best friend's voice pulls him from his impending anxiety spiral, thank fuck. He looks up. Michael pushes the Mountain Dew towards him.

"Warm Mountain Dew is disgusting. You better drink that now, before I do." He cracks a smile that makes the corners of Jeremy's mouth itch to match it. He smiles half-heartedly instead.

"Yeah, yeah. Alright." He grabs the soda, twisting the cap off as Michael starts tapping his fingers on the table, like a drumroll.

Jeremy swallows the pill.

It goes down about as smoothly as he'd expected– that is to say, he nearly chokes on it. Doesn't, but nearly. In the back of his mind, he decides he's never swallowing something with a weird shape ever again. Eugh. He doesn't realise Michael had stopped tapping until they've been sitting in silence for a minute or two. Michael raises a brow.

"Sooo... feel anything?"

Jeremy chews on his bottom lip. He feels... like a chump. His shoulders droop.

"I feel like I just wasted my Bar Mitzvah money on a freaky wintergreen Tic-tac." He grumbles out, crossing his arms on the table and laying his head down. He lets out a groan into his cardigan sleeves. Dumb decision, dumb Jeremy. Bluh.

He only hears Michael get up, hears him push in the chair, feels him pat his shoulder with a hand.

" 'm sorry, dude." Pat, pat. "I'll give you some alone time so you can mourn? My hookup at the Spencer's Gifts finally came through, and I gotta go pick up some Ecto-cooler!"

He didn't need to see Michael to be able to _feel_ his excitement, it was nearly palpable.

"It's the tie-in drink from Ghostbusters that was discontinued in the 90s!"

Jeremy turns his head to the side, looking up at Michael with one eye. "...what's it taste like?"

If his smile could get wider, it did. Michael bounces a little on his feet, resting his hands on the table and leaning in towards Jeremy.

" _Ghosts_." 

They both let out short laughs at Michael's serious tone, although whatever sound manages to escape Jeremy is muffled my his sweater sleeves. He lifts his head only as Michael walks away. At least the fries were still a little warm, so he picks idly at what's left of them until there's nothing left.

  
  
  


* * *

After a couple minutes, and when he’s finally finished the fries, Jeremy decides it’s time to get up. Sitting and moping in the Menlo Park food court isn’t gonna get him anywhere. He’ll just shoot Michael a quick text, telling him he’s gonna walk around. Yeah, he’ll be fine. It’ll be fine. He wants to stretch his legs. Maybe check out Gamestop?

He pauses at the trash. He... shouldn’t just throw away a perfectly good Mountain Dew, right? But Jeremy does _not_ want to hold that as he walks around. Ah, fuck it.

He screws off the cap and chugs what’s left, then throws away the empty bottle.

Jeremy perks up when he hears a familiar voice coming towards his direction and freezes in place.

“Sooo, should we like, wait for anyone? Who else is coming?”

_Christine_... accompanied by none other than Jake Dillinger. Ugh. Chances dashed.

Or maybe...? Jeremy shakes his head. that’s social suicide. But maybe the mall (full of strangers) would be better than school (full of knowing stares)? His legs carry him forwards anyway as he struggles internally, and because he’s not looking, Jeremy collides.

“That’s why I’m bringing you to my fave food place, Sbarro—whoa, hey!”

“Oh! are you okay?” A hand appears in his vision as Jeremy rubs his head. “Here!”

He blinks a few times and looks up as her hand grasps his. He stumbles and nearly falls over, too completely focused on the fact that _Christine_ is touching his hand. She’s _touching_ his _hand_ , they’re _holding hands_ , he’s minorly freaking out and he doesn’t want her to ever let him go, but then–

She does. And the moment is gone. But she smiles, and that melts away anything else with a soft buzzing in the back of his head.

  
  


**_{[ Target female: inaccessible. ]}_ **

A layered voice almost like static speaks to him, mere seconds before his nerves go up in flames, and suddenly, he’s back on the ground. Can’t catch a break, but Jeremy’s too preoccupied with searing pain to make any snarky comments at his own expense.

**_{[ Calibration in process. Please excuse some_ ** **mild** **_discomfort. ]}_ **

“Th-th- _this_ is–” Jeremy jerks around on the floor, clutching the sides of his head. ” _Mild?!_ ”

At this point, some employees and other concerned mall-goers start to crowd around the poor kid in the cardigan sweater having some sort of meltdown on the ground. Christine calls out to him, leaning towards Jake for support (but Jeremy can’t really see that).

“J-jeremy? what’s wrong?” She goes to reach out to him a second time, but seems to think better of it at the last second. 

  
  
  


**_{[ Calibration complete. Access procedure: initiated. ]}_ **

By some miracle, Jeremy makes it up to his knees. He inhales in a few deep breaths, before glancing up at the only two people he can point out in the crowd and starting to get back on his feet.

“I’m– I’m fine, I promise, I—”

A chill runs down his spine, before he’s set on fire.

**_{[ Discomfort level may increase. ]}_ **

Jeremy’s body convulses again, and he tries to grip at his hair as if he could possibly make it stop. It hurts, it hurts, _it hurts so much_ and he doesn’t understand _why_ or _how_.

He can only focus on the pain. His mind feels like static and his body feels fake. It’s a miracle he hasn’t passed out.

**_{[ Accessing: neuro memory. Accessing: muscle memory. Access procedure:_ ** **complete** **_. ]}_ **

A figure loads from the ground up in front of him, and all Jeremy can do is gape. The almost 3D-glasses effect hurts his eyes.

  
  
  


**_{[ Jeremy Heere. ]}_ **

  
  


The figure finally splits in two, the 3D effect lost as Jeremy's eyes adjust. There's two, almost holographic bodies standing in front of him, each with a different face and posture. When they speak, the voices overlap yet again.

  
  


**_{[ Your SQUIP. ]}_ **

  
  
  


And then, the world snaps back into place.

**Author's Note:**

> here's an old piece i never published! did this between late 2019 and early 2020 and never got any further with it, but i Really liked the concept of jeremy getting a fucked-up pill that gives him TWO squips instead of one. probably using the concept for an oc as well, but that's not on topic here haha


End file.
